ATS and Mental Illness

I have had some conversations with people that started out to be antagonistic and then turned into full blown fruit loops crazy. One guy is convinced there is a huge conspiracy with people following him and trying to make him crazy. Everyone he comes in contact with. I started to feel bad for poking him as he was obviously delusional. I worry about what if I said something to make him snap or what if someone else did the same thing. I an mot sure there is an easy solution, but it might save a life to identify an issue to someone. I just don't know who to tell.

reply to post by Fractured.Facade


Sorry but i think any thread that says “your medication is bad for you” or “they control you through your medication” cannot be a therapeutic thing for anyone with any type of illness as it always casts some doubt over what you are taking. This feeling of doubt is multiplied exponentially by someone with a severe psychiatric diagnosis.

reply to post by network dude


Two questions are you talking about somebody who you know personally off ATS who is going through this right now and secondly do you live in the UK.

You know what's funny? When you engage in conversation with your GP about everyday things, you might sometimes mention the "odd" belief that they give you a strange look for mentioning. I'm not talking anything outrageous but something like "sometimes you feel like the banks control the government" and it makes you think even more like the conspiracy might be real. When you talk to a psychiatrist and mention an "out-there" idea, they give the same look. It's not exactly a "you are insane!" look, but more a "here are the warning signs" look. The trouble is that it seems they have been conditioned to think that "warning signs" mean what you say is completely fictional. Yes, the range of the conspiracy might be too far, but you shouldn't be getting these kinds of looks for stating things that might have some truth to them if you do a little research.

[edit on 20/7/2010 by Dark Ghost]

reply to post by Dark Ghost


I agree it is wrong of you GP if he is giving you judgemental looks just for hold unconventional believes.

Explanation: I'm very disapointed that the OP has chosen not to reply to my inquiry!

I'm quite certain I do qualify! Here is why...

Note BTS thread. Please sign up/in for best viewing pleasure OK!

Have you heard of ACHLYS? (by OmegaLogos) [BTS]

I can't self assess this OBJECTIVELY...is it really happening? (by OmegaLogos) [ATS]

Personal Disclosure:

Originally posted by kevinunknown
I would go as far to say any member who confesses to having experiences of a mental illness should be banned.

Get real.

If we stuck to the 'status-quo' as yous say, then most people would be diagnosed with some form of mental illness.

Walk into a doctors office, with nothing particularly wrong with you. Just tell him about your day. Tell him about all the thoughts, feelings and emotions that you, a run of the mill citizen, experiences throughout your existence.

You'll walk out with a baggie of free samples to treat your clinical depression, anxiety, oh, and not to mention your ADD.

There are real mental conditions that that cause people real problems. Depression, anxiety, add etc. are not them. These are merely facets of the human condition. People get depressed. They get anxious and scared. The human mind wanders endlessly. That doesn't mean something is wrong with you.

People pop pills because they're depressed. Why are they depressed? Most people, doctors included, don't even care to find out. It's much more profitable to simply put you on an expensive regimen of pharmaceutical pocket-liners.

You want to ban those who confess to delusions... And who gets to decide whats a delusion and what's not? Do we ban anyone who claims they saw a UFO? Do we ban anyone who thinks there are hidden agenda's amongst those in power? Do we ban anyone who doesn't believe official government stories on particular events? Essentially, any conspiracy can be construed as a "delusion". So, you're really suggesting that a community based around conspiracy ban any member with a conspiracy theory?

Originally posted by kevinunknown
reply to post by Xcalibur254

 

Couldn’t agree with you more. I once told someone quoting some random blog site about some crazy claim about mental illness (sorry it can’t remember what it was) anyway i told this ATSter to go and see if he could find any peer reviewed works that could back up his claim. I was treated like a puppy killer because according to him anything that is peer reviewed cannot be trusted because it is manipulated by the NWO.

I never got the whole NWO thing. I think it's just some generalized term that has been blown way out of proportion. NWO and chemtrails represent to me the height of paranoia.

I think there are real conspiracies out there, but the vast majority of them are ones nobody has even scratched the surface of.

There have been real "conspiracies" out there. Just look at J. Edgar Hoover as a whole. MLK Jr. smeer campaign, COINTELPRO, MkUltra, etc. None of them have exactly been as sinister as some theories that are out today, but they are there, and now reside in history.

I saw three UFO's (by the exact definition of the word). Does that make me crazy? Although my two sightings were very exciting, they were nowhere near as elaborate or as detailed as many say theirs were. They were just two flying, metallic, gray spheres and one that hovered. No glowing, no beams of light, just simple metallic spheres.

I don't claim they were aliens. They were probably military, given my area. Just look for Centreville, VA on that new map provided by the Washington Post's Top Secret America and you will see what I mean. But I honestly have no idea what they were, no evidence to form ANY explanation of their origin. They were just there, I saw them, and that was it.

Even if I did jump to the extraterrestrial origin theory, it would take a LOT, and oh boy I MEAN A LOT, to convince me that they were "reptilians," "Annunaki," "Zetas," "Inter dimensional" or even "grays." That stuff is pure, unfounded speculation.

Does that make me mentally ill?

[edit on 20-7-2010 by SubPop79]

[edit on 20-7-2010 by SubPop79]

reply to post by kevinunknown


This is the truth.

I have a friend who started off with a mental illness. He is bipolar and schizophrenic. He is highly stable when he is on his meds. A contributing member to life. Not just society. He isn't drone, which some ATS members told him. He isn't "controlled" like some ATS members told him. He stopped taking his meds at the advice of some contacts he made here.

He became obsessed with this site and a lot of the information on it. I tried to be stability for him and show him the other side, but he became so paranoid, my voice was just chatter to him.

He became a HUGE David Icke follower, then progressed into talking with his goldfish and all animals around. Even when there weren't any.

When he started discussing his hatred toward a fellow co worker, who was a LOW level mason, it was time to intervene.

By this point he was discussion killing all the masons, certain people of power, due to them being a "reptilian" in hiding etc etc...

He told me that our employer was trying to silence him, because he "knew" too much and he figured everyone was being directed to now"force" him back to his "zombified" state. He truly believed he was "awake".

He ended up spending some time in our local psych institution. Where once on his meds, he found God, and was sincere about his true love for his new found stability. Sadly, even the bible has thrown his mind off wack again. He has spiraled into holding "seances" and truly seeking an afterlife. God told him that he could fight his disease without meds and it is getting time for another intervention. There is concern that he truly would hurt or kill someone, including himself as he believes SO strongly.

I blame his first breakdown specifically on this site, and David Icke's. Not because of the content, but because of the connections he made and "information" he received from people from these sites.

For an example, I have a child with very bad chronic lung issues. (They are getting a lot better) We were offered the H1N1 vaccine before the trials were completed. As volunteers we thought it would be a good idea to have him vaccinated. Most people on these forums "cringe" to that, I know.

He received the vaccination because the information I was given by the medical professional, (a close family friend and not an agent of death) was a lot more sound than a bunch of paranoids, from a conspiracy website. Most of which told everyone: "THIS IS THE DEPOPULATION SERUM". Please. My child was and is fine. Did NOT contract any flu, and the H1N1 strain did go through our house.

Point being, because I am based in reality, I was able to make a sound decision for the health and welfare of my family. Otherwise, my child could have his health and life severely compromised.

I'm not saying all the information on ATS is bunk at all. There is some fantastic stuff here, BUT for weaker minds, this place is dangerous as hell.

One more example, being in the law enforcement realm...I see people scream out when a video of a L.E.O. abusing his powers hits youtube. They scream how he is a power hungry agent of death and should now suffer 10 times the grief and violence(descriptively) just because he is a PIG.

There are some very dangerous words on this site. For people who have trouble defining reality and admit it...I definitely agree with you.

Sorry for the block post.



[edit on 20-7-2010 by Demoncreeper]

reply to post by Unit541


No I only think members who have been diagnosed with a severe mental illness that causes paranoid delusions should be banned. Some people live with extreme depression its a very real mental illness, some people with depression will turn to alcohol and others might turn to a rope with a noose. If a pill can be taken to stop that pain, what’s wrong with that? Yes you can walk into a doctor’s office and spot off a whole list of symptoms you read about on Google to get some meds and he’ll give you some pills but that is your fault and not the doctors.

reply to post by Demoncreeper


Thank you so much for your wonderful and personal contribution.

Your friend is exactly the type of person i am talking about and its is why i think it is important we do something about mental health on ATS. I really hope he gets back on his feet soon.

reply to post by Unit541


Tell the people that suffer from major depressive disorder or generalized anxiety disorder with agoraphobia that these are just normal facets of human existence. When your mood doesn't change for 6 months no matter what happens and you regularly contemplate suicide, that's a problem. When you can't leave your house for years without your pulse racing, sweat pouring down your, and a paralyzing fear that you're going to die if you take another step, that's a problem. Spend some time in an inpatient mental health facility talking to the depressives and try to come back and tell us that what they are experiencing is normal.

Originally posted by kevinunknown
reply to post by network dude

 

Two questions are you talking about somebody who you know personally off ATS who is going through this right now and secondly do you live in the UK.

The person I was talking about is/was a member here but I didn't know them personally. Strangely enough they were in the UK. Is organized gang stalking a big for real issue over there? I will try to find the thread I mean.

reply to post by kevinunknown



I wouldn`t agree with banning members who suffer from mental illnesses ..... that just creates an even more unhelpful schism & labelling .~Mental illness~ is quite a catch-all term extending from depression into the deeper personality disorders.

Such actions would just shut down peoples personal disclosures on mental health issues .

But i agree 100% with the suggestion, that advise given to people with self confessed mental health diagnoses, should be at least be monitored further.

===============================================

This is the double edge of the internet ......

I could dream up the most fantastical story imaginable and sill find a few hundred people to agree with it online.

Whether it is a paranoid delusion or a panchance for some obscure fetish, the internet can take a disparate collection of people, separated by vast distances and offer them a forum where their obscure thoughts can appear closer to `the norm` in the company of like minded individuals.

Individuals who are now emboldened because they are not the only ones.

reply to post by SubPop79

Explanation: I think the OP'er (kevinunknown) was refering more to members that post "OMG! XY or Z Theory or Sighting or Prediction" followed up with dislosure of either their real and or percieved mental state of affairs as being..hmmm lets say untidy [omfg PC from me I admit my bias and don't really see myself as mental ill..from my POV I am, have and always will be fine! ]

Personal Disclosure: If the Dr's can't explain it to me and make absolute sense without popping me some pill, powder and or potion, then really can they say that they've been effective..affective yes..but effective???

P.S. @ kevinunknown...

NLP [neuro-linguistic-programming] + healthy lifestyle WORKS! PLEASE Stop pushing Big Pharma's BS on us OK!

It seems to be that almost every day now we have someone writing about their experiences of mental health but with a bit of a conspiracy twist. I am talking about statements like “I was abducted by Aliens and that is why i am mentally ill” or “I might be mentally ill but that is because of a glitch in the matrix”, and “I am not mentally ill rather I am being visited by God”.

I don't think threads like this are all that common but then I tend to only contribute to more tangible ideas.

A thread was 404ed this afternoon which I contributed too, in which the person was asking for advice about mixing medication with Cannabis use. The comments from the other members were all offering advice and support and every single one of them tried to help the OP, primarily by suggesting he visit his GP, which he agreed to.

Unfortunately you are correct in ATS' ability to affect the state of mind of vulnerable individuals, but this will occur regardless as long as these people have access to the Internet. All you can really do is offer constructive comments offering advice, and hope that someone in the real world is looking out for them too.

I have seen people on here make fun of those reaching out for help in the past, and I think Mods should be on top of those individuals too.

Anyway starred and flagged.

reply to post by UmbraSumus


I did make an edit being more specific at the end of the OP about the banning issue after a few posters pointed out what you have. I am talking about people with paranoid delusions. I agree with you about the internet being a double edged sward.

reply to post by OmegaLogos


A healthy lifestyle only goes so far. Just wondering where you accusing me of using NLP, I was accused of that once. I am not pushing for the big prahma companies i just think that there are not pharma conspiracies.

reply to post by kevinunknown

here
is the thread I was talking about. The subject is interesting and you can find a few folks who would benefit from professional help in them. If work gets slow, you could hang a shingle on ATS.

I agree i'm studying psychology, hoping to get my PhD, and some of the things people say can be quite frightening. I believe there is a line between the supernatural and the unexplained, and mental illness. In some cases its interesting to hear the other more spiritual reasons like Dreaming can take us to alternate parallels or being able to meditate and reach a higher power in an attempt to communicate with the supreme beings.

But when people are saying they can full out see people and hear voices in a conscious state its worrisome. If you are hearing things in a conscious state and are seeing what is not there you need help. If you are denying you have a problem or are transferring it to another cause like abductions you need to see some one.

Other worrisome things are some of the vaccination conspiracy claims. Its okay to not want to get them your self but if your risking you child's life on the claims of some person without documented evidence that's sickening With the H1N1 people were documented as being sick and becoming violently ill.